The case of Tyne in Florida some years ago dealt with this issue, involving the real person portrayed by George Clooney in "The Perfect Storm." Both the Fed Ct and State Ct allowed the use without compensation to the family. Free Speech was the cornerstone of the decisions.

The banket license, used by PROs is a massive fraud, a fraud on licensees and a fraud on PRO members or affils. PROs are all racketeering influenced corrupt organizations and should be broken up into regional or state based PROs. The anti-trust laws should be used to shut them down and toss their executives into a padded cell or jail.

Truly surprising that attorneys who have pledged to uphold the constitution would seek to destroy th first amendment rights found in that constituion. The founding father never envisioned that their copyright provision would destroy their first amendment provision.

ASCAP and BMI charge for a blanket license. The license pays for access to all the pro repertory, not avtual us of repertory. It is a crock, a con, right out there in the open. Radio and TV pay for a lot o music they never brioadcast. And the member or affils of ascap and bmi get cheated becaus their music is used to generate the license, but thy wion't get paid for it.

2. Not everyone likes music, and since taxes are enforced at the point of a gun ultimately, it's stupid. Music should not be accorded such a high place that taxes are needed to ebnforece music "rights." Absurd idea. Let's start the tea party now.

If the RIAA had its way, it would destroy the long standing common law requirement that a plaintiff still has to prove a case and damages. It would demand judgment upon the filing of the lawsuit itself. That is an attack on the third branch of government, the system of american jurisprudence--as such, that is an act of terrorism and treason. The RIAA wants to overthrow the courts! District Court judges should place RIAA reps under arrest and throw them into prisons.

If the RIAA gets its way, it will destroy the pinciples underlying american jurisprudence. Especially in the burden of proof area.

Maybe it wants to be awarded judgment and damages just for filing the damn complaint or mandate a confession of judgment for RIAA infringement cases? the damage it is doing to the court system and the FRCP is amazing.

Someone needs to sue it for RICO. Only a racketeering org would want to destroy the justice system.

Friday, September 21, 2007
Vampires and the RIAA
Ever notice how vampires operate? They suck your blood all the while making you think that they are doing you the favor.
It really does appear that the RIAA and its net representative, Sound Exchange, operate under the same principle.
The RIAA has the Copyright Royalty Board under its thumb and appears to dictate web policy to that board, the RIAA tells webcasters what they will pay or else they go to jail or get sued. This seems to be coercion to me.
So, in effect, the RIAA sets royalty payments unilaterally, sucks the funds from the webcasters and makes them think that the RIAA did them the favor.
If the RIAA had its way, there'd be no webcasting at all. Each note of music would have to be bought from one of the RIAA's constituent members. No more free music of any kind, no more fair use would exist, nothing without payment. Pay through the nose, then give up your nose.
One thing that webcasters forget as victims of this policy, they could put a stop to it fast. Just stop webcasting music. When the public starts complaining to Congress to do something about it, perhaps the RIAA can be controlled by reason and not avarice.
Victimizers often forget that if they destroy the victim, their victimization ceases and they have no source left from which to suck.
Unfortunately, the so-called musical performance artists contribute to this victimization by profiting from the RIAA's activities, whether vicariously or otherwise. You can't take your profits with a clear conscience when the agency collecting for you is known to be set on destroying the source of those profits.
Musicians can create music without an audience, but do they really want that?
Just some thoughts.
BRIAN LEE CORBER, CORBERLAW@AOL.COM, Panorama City, California 91412-4656, 818-786-7133.

Use Cal;ifornia's Business & Professions Code Section 17200 se seq, sue for unfair business practice and then watch the RIAA have to comply with FRCP 26 disclosures of all of its electronically stored information.